“Helse Nord is off course.” The startling statement comes from the chief executive of the country’s northernmost regional health enterprise, Marit Lind. In a column on Thursday evening, the director writes that the services to the northern Norwegian population are under threat, and that the merger of services in one or more healthcare institutions must be considered. She paints a gloomy picture of a company that is struggling financially, the hospitals in Northern Norway lack more than 1,000 employees and have major problems recruiting professionals. They have long waiting lists and a high proportion of missed deadlines. – At the same time as we lack staffing, Norway has the most health workers per inhabitant in Europe, and we in Northern Norway have 25 per cent more than the national average. Next week, Helse Nord will have a board meeting, where the task of getting the company on the right course begins in earnest. (Each dot is an unfilled position in Helse Nord) And there is a lot to deal with, according to the director. Because it is precisely the headache of staffing that is the cause of the financial challenges. – Helse Nord actually has a budget big enough for many more positions than we are able to recruit for, writes Lind further. In a recently published chronicle, director Marit Lind of Helse Nord says that the services to the northern Norwegian population are under threat, and that one must consider merging services in one or more health organisations. Photo: Pål Hansen / news The money therefore goes to a large extent to hire temporary workers from private agencies and pay overtime to own employees. Therefore, the board of Helse Nord has been given the task of looking at changes in the tasks that the various hospitals carry out. And among the hospitals in Northern Norway, there are big differences – and a lot of small ones: 8 of the 13 smallest emergency hospitals are in Helse Nord. Around 46 per cent of emergency admissions in Helse Nord take place at Nordlandssykehuset in Bodø or at UNN in Tromsø. 8 percent of admissions at the other acute hospitals are transferred to Bodø or Tromsø. Seven hospitals in the region have, on average, fewer than two surgical and fewer than two orthopedic emergency admissions per day. 12 of the 14 maternity units in the region had an average of fewer than one birth per day in 2022. The two smallest had far less than one birth per week. 11 of the 20 smallest district medical centers (DMS) are located in Helse Nord. Overview of the hospitals in Helse Nord in the three northernmost counties. Here we see that there are 11 hospitals in northern Norway today. Lofoten mayor: – Concerned In Gravdal in Vestvågøy municipality is the local hospital for the roughly 25,000 inhabitants who live in Lofoten. Mayor Anne Sand (Sp) worried about the signals coming from the director of Helse Nord. – The small units it will affect, such as our hospital in Gravdal. Mayor Anne Sand (Sp) in Vestvågøy believes that employees in smaller hospitals can stay in larger hospitals to maintain competence and experience. Photo: John Inge Johansen / news Today, the hospital offers a range of services, from psychiatry to somatic treatment. But the mayor believes that the hospital cannot be deprived of more functions in a new hospital cabal. – We must retain the functions we have today in order to have a good life for our citizens and safety and preparedness in everyday life. Earlier this week, all the mayors gathered for an information meeting with Helse Nord. – We cannot see that Helse Nord has taken into account the fact that we have 1 million visitors each year. It means something for the description of reality, says the mayor. Must be prepared for major changes Tone Sofie Aglen is a political commentator at news has read the chronicle of the chief executive of Helse Nord. She says that the population in the north must prepare for major changes in the hospital structure. – The big problem in northern Norway going forward is not a lack of money, but a lack of health personnel. It has long been believed that you can educate more people and employ more people. That’s not going to happen, says Tone Sofie Aglen. Photo: news – Northern Norway has received a marching order from the Minister of Health, Ingvild Kjerkol, that services must be concentrated in fewer places. This means that some may have to travel further to get a service they need. They write directly in the board papers that you have to go from small and vulnerable professional environments to larger and more flexible environments. In practice, this means that especially the smallest hospitals in the districts can expect changes. The employees worried Another hospital that may notice changes in the body is Helgelandssykehuset, where the level of conflict has been sky high for several years. The battle for the hospital structure of the future has led to complete division in the region. Company union representative Morten Jensen at Helgeland’s hospital says the employees are worried ahead of the board meeting next week. – Helgelands hospital has been involved in demanding and sometimes destructive processes for a long time. I really hope that both Helse Nord and the ministry do not cause us new upheavals. According to the Helse Nord director, the restructuring work will start after the board meeting on 23 February. And she promises an open process. – Concrete proposals for change must be drawn up during the spring, when the board has adopted the main directions we will work towards, according to Marit Lind. And adds: – The work must be based on open processes with risk and vulnerability analyses, good participation and involvement.
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The hospitals lack more than 1,000 employees in the north – news Nordland
